Significant Glitch

Chapter 1

Alvarie's shadow walked in front of her, creating gray and black tones with the gravel it shifted upon. Sharp short clicks accompanied its silent movement, as the spray paint cans in her bag clinked themselves together. She drew a long breath stopping at blank brick wall just far enough from the city that she wouldn't get caught. Crouching down, Alvarie dropped her bag causing one sharp click to ring out. She put her hands over the top of it silencing the can's ever present song. Once she was sure of their silence, she used her trained eye to pick out a bright blue in the dim, unhelpful light caused by a faraway street lamp. Giving the can a good shake, Alvarie opened the cap, pressed down on the nozzle, and began to paint short sharp bursts onto the brick. Soon, a figure began to take shape. Blending the blue with her trusty black, Alvarie created the shape of a man wearing a sweeping blue coat. Standing up, she studied the blank spot where she had neglected to put his head. There, Alvarie painted a large graphic question mark. She stood back, inspecting her work fondly before packing up her things and slinging her bag back over her shoulder. "Hey!" she heard a voice of authority shout in the distance. She knew it was time to run, almost like clockwork.

Several buildings scaled later and more than enough cramps in her side, Alvarie skidded to a stop in front an unassuming gray building. She caught her breath and climbed the stairs stopping at the top to pull a silver key from her back pocket. The door squeaked open with a few shudders revealing more sets of unwelcoming stairs. Mustering her last bits of oxygen, Alvarie climbed the two flights to a second door. Pulling out another silver key, she turned the lock and opened the door.

As soon as she had shut it behind her, Alvarie was greeted by rather loud music not welcome to the early hours of the morning. Turning to lock the door, she threw her bag on a nearby coffee table and tossed her keys into a dish that rested there. As she crossed the entryway and walked into the living space Alvarie took careful note of all the peeling wallpaper and mysterious stains that she would have to fix once she had the money, if ever. Tearing her wandering eyes from the walls was the sight of three guys and a girl lounging on the threadbare futon and rug that lay in front of her. Her roommates all happened to be graffiti artists and they all also happened to be loud which, worked to her advantage since it meant that no one would notice if she slipped away into her room while they were arguing over who was going to the shops or something.

Directly in front of Alvarie was Todd who sat on the edge of the rug in a meditative stance with his eyes closed. Behind him was Valerie who, had her back against the edge of the futon and was filing her nails to the god awful rhythm of whatever junk music they had decided to blast that night. Both Todd and Valerie dressed liked they had taken a pair of scissors and cut up every article of clothing they owned. Both sported very long dreadlocks. On the couch itself, sat Raz accompanied by Alvarie's half-brother Alger who, at that moment, looked like he'd just been run over by a truck.

"Did you do it?" Valerie said, glancing up to acknowledge Alvarie's arrival.

"Yep." Alvarie answered strolling towards her to sit between Raz and Alger on the futon. Valerie let out a puff of air, showing the slightest hint of amusement. "It was easy," Alvarie continued, "And it felt good... really good."

"By morning I bet we'll have drawn 'em out." Raz chimed in gleefully with the exuberance of a puppy being taken for its first stroll. Alvarie turned to her left and raised her eyebrows at him.

"Why are you so happy?" Alvarie questioned, shifting in her seat to face him. "I thought you liked the guy; even helped him once."

"So?" Raz replied.

"So, you should be angry because we all mean to turn him in." Alvarie explained.

"I was, 'cept he turned in five more of our guys this week just for getting paid to paint up a few walls by some criminal." Alvarie stiffened at this, wondering who had been turned in for taking another anonymous tip.